Not Me! Monday!

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

• My 4 year old did NOT paint her 2 year old sister's toe nails, as well as her own, during nap time. I most certainly was NOT scrapbooking while this was occurring. Nope! NOT at this house!
  
• I did NOT have difficulty stifling my laughter as my husband threatened our children with serious trouble if their misbehavior at the dinner table continued...What exactly is serious trouble anyways???? And by the way, NO ONE was sent to the corner during this whole ordeal, including ME.


• I do NOT have problems stifling my laughter at other inappropriate times as well. Nope! Not me!!!


• I did NOT recently decide it was time to part with my maternity/nursing bras (holes and all). I, also, did NOT hide them at the back of the drawer just in case the new ones, you know, don't work out. Nope! Not me!


• I do NOT test my husband's patience with my lack of computer knowledge. What do ya mean, just go to Windows Explorer? ISB port? Programs? Accessories? Huh? ABAPBAPBAP.
• Yeah, and I CANNOT figure out how to center those 2 pictures up there and I'm NOT going to bother ask my husband again.
• And I'm NOT late to pick up my daughter from cheerleading camp because of my lack of computer knowledge computer problems!
  
  

Wordless Wednesday

Good Golly, Miss Molly!

Last Saturday Rachel, Nelly and I had tea with some lovely ladies at Miss Molly's Tea Room. What a sweet bunch of girls! And what you can't tell from this picture is that they are also fabulously talented ballerinas!

And yes, everyone wore their seat belt.

One grain at a time

I DID IT!!!! I found something to keep Emily in one spot for more than 2 seconds!!!

Last month Sarah's preschool class took a field trip to the playground at the library. They spent a good deal of time playing in the sand while I spent a good deal of time trying not to think about all the stray cats that probably pee in the sand every night. Anyways, Emily was fascinated and was picking up the sand one grain at a time. Now that would be a pretty time-consuming castle to build!

A homeschooling perk: Big brothers get to come along to the playground and push you and your friends on the tire swing! Sarah's friends adored Benjamin and he was so gentle, patient and kind with them.

Another homeschooling perk: Big sisters get to come along to the playground and help you play and build in the sand. They can also teach you how to do it faster than one grain at a time! Rachel was great with Sarah's preschool friends. They were amazed with her skills!

Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday

Not Me! Monday!

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

• It did NOT take my hubby and me an entire day to clean out the garage. We did NOT find 17 phonebooks scattered about, waiting to be dropped off at the recycle trailer. Nope, not here at this house!
• We did NOT see 4 raccoons hanging out in/under/around the recycle trailer so that said phonebooks were unable to be dropped off and are NOT still residing in my van, making a rather interesting obstacle course for children entering and exiting my taxi cab van.
• I did NOT find 2 dirty diapers while cleaning out the garage. I guess that system of just tossing stinky diapers out the door with the intention of later putting it in the garbage can isn't working out so well. Good thing Emily does NOT poop in her pull up anymore.
• Speaking of which, I did NOT have to wash the shower curtain, along with surrounding walls, cabinets, towels, toilets and children [read Emily] after hearing these frantic words from Rachel, "MOM, Emily pooped everywhere, it's EVERYWHERE!!!!"
• I did NOT have 7 children running around like screamin'mimis angelically playing quiet games at our house yesterday. My son is NOT bitter that his sister's friends were able to stay 3 hours longer than his.
• My neverforgetathingson, Benjamin, did NOT help me remember all these lovely things that did NOT happen this past week. Nope! No way!

Wordless Wednesday

Sarah fell in love

On Memorial Day Sarah found a new best friend. Sophie (which is pronounced Sue-Fee in Sarah world) was the cutest little puppy and oh-so-sweet!

Sarah, who is VERY shy and quiet, went to talk to Sophie's "mom" and to ask if she could hold the leash. That's a huge step for Sarah to go and talk to someone she doesn't know. Don't panic, it wasn't a stranger. It was a family friend who was at a Memorial Day gathering at Grandma and Grandpa's house. But Sarah probably doesn't remember seeing her before. Sophie was the perfect size for Sarah. I could just see Sophie and Sarah snuggled up sleeping together. Sarah would be such a good mommy to her!

Happy June!!!!

June is my favorite month! The weather is warmer (although today it's chilly) and even warmer weather is coming soon; school work is winding down; we have the anticipation of the whole summer in front us! Lazy days at the pool and ice cream.... here we come!

Oh, and my birthday too. Only 29 shopping days :)

Not Me! Monday!

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

• Last week I did NOT find a bottle of salad dressing (blue cheese, if you must know) that expired over two years ago. Nope! Not Me!



• My husband is NOT obsessed with changing every stinkin' light bulb in our house (whether it needs it or not) to high efficiency compact fluorescent bulbs that supposedly will last for 7 years.



• I did NOT allow my overly energetic 2 year old to ride in the trailer of Grandpa's tractor without following closely behind to make sure she would stay put! My 4 year old most certainly was NOT doing the driving and my 8 year old was definitely NOT the one that got hurt during the excursion!
  

The Pommel Horse

A few years back I remember hearing a comedian talk about being able to afford to go on vacation now that his kids were out of diapers. I can relate.

Emily is our earliest, not to mention last, potty trainer and I am quite excited and very thankful. I just wish I would have had this, oh say, about 10 years ago. That's some good information.

We have one of those handy dandy seats that fits directly on the toilet seat. I thought it was a mah-velous find; much better than the traditional potty chair that you have to empty and clean each time they go. It worked great for Benjamin, Rachel and Sarah, but then of course you eventually have to wean them from it. However, weaning Emily won't be a problem because she doesn't want anything to do with it. She doesn’t like it because then she can’t do her acrobatic maneuvers to peer into the bowl to admire her accomplishments. I've never seen such potty gymnastics. This picture reminds me of Emily on the potty.
That girl! I have quite a long list of things that only Emily ever thought to do (in our family, anyways). No doubt about it... She's one-of-a-kind!

A Mermaid's Tale

Rachel's fourth Ballet Recital was last weekend. She did a fantastic job and we were very proud of her! She loves dancing and does well so that makes it worth all of the time, taxi rides and $$$. I don't know if dancing is something she will pursue as a career, but for now it keeps her happy, healthy, in shape and focused.

This is my beautiful little Rainbow Fish!

All of the girls danced beautifully. It is so fun to watch them grow and progress. They have become quite the little ballerinas!

The Best Bun Ever! (after 4 years of practice!)
This was the costume for Rachel's Modern Class. They were a School of Fish.

And last but not least, Performing Company. Their number was called Under the Sea.

A little birdie told me that next year might be Tinkerbell and Pixie Hollow!

Come sail away

Last Sunday, Rachel and I went on a Nautica Queen cruise with Ariel and other friends from the Cleveland Ballet Conservatory. It was a beautiful, sunny day although it was a wee bit chilly. After the crazy week we had with all the sickies in our house, it was WONDERFUL to take a break from it all and just get away sail away with my princess. As we sat down at our cozy table for two she breathed a big sigh of relief and said, "Whew! We finally get to enjoy a quiet, peaceful meal... just the two of us!" With a cute little giggle she added, "I'm on vacation!"
She hit that nail on the head! Yes it did feel like we were on a much-too-short vacation! After lunch, Rachel and her friends hit the dance floor with Ariel. I knew Ariel was a good swimmer, but who knew she could dance? The mermaid's got some moves, let me tell ya!

Since we were cruising on Lake Erie the DJ gave us a few nuggets of info concerning the Great Lakes. We learned how to remember the names of the five great lakes.... HOMES - Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie and Superior. We also learned that Lake Erie contains only 2% of the total water in the Great Lakes. Also, the Rock-n-Roll Hall of Fame was designed to look like a record player from the top (as in, if you're flying over the top in an airplane).

Then back to reality. This week has been full of rehearsals for Rachel's upcoming performance of The Little Mermaid. Stay tuned for pictures!

Wordless Wednesday

Not Me! Monday!

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

• I did NOT spend many hours this past week cleaning up you-know-what and you-know-what from my sick kids. My carpet will NEVER be the same!
• I did NOT giggle to myself as my son (who has a very weak stomach) with hands held over his ears, ran from room to room, while one sister was *in* the downstairs bathroom and another sister was *in* the upstairs bathroom, looking for a quiet spot, while yelling, "Now, the cat's PUKING too!!!!" Sometimes I must laugh to keep from crying.
• I most certainly did NOT ignore my older 3 kids pleas and cries of hunger as they begged for breakfast between the hours of 9am and noon last Tuesday since my 2 year old and I had NOT been up all night and we had NOT just fallen asleep on the bathroom floor.
• I did NOT breathe a HUGE sigh of relief as my 2 year old had just slid off my lap moments before her... how shall I say it... pull up exploded?! I, then, did NOT furiously scramble for carpet cleaner, paper towels, plastic bags, etc.
• I did NOT refuse to sleep in the same bed as my very sick husband. And besides that, the clean-waiting-to-be-folded laundry was NOT piled high, the entire length of my side of the bed.
• xxx days later, the laundry is still NOT piled high, the entire length of my side of the bed.

So, there you have it. There was NO shortage on sickness in our house this week. I feel the need to open all the windows (except it's very chilly) and scrub this house from top to bottom with large amounts of bleach.

I need some Scotch

My four year old is a tapir.

No.... not that kind of tapir.

She's a taper, meaning she LOVES to tape. She consistently finds and uses LARGE amounts of tape for just about anything. I know all kids are fascinated with tape, but she is especially fond of the enticing adhesive. So I have tried to brainwash convince her that Mommy is the taper in this family. She is not a taper! Maybe if tape (or money for that matter) grew on trees I could let her indulge on a regular basis. But I mean seriously. She can go through a whole roll of tape in a matter of minutes!

While driving home from preschool the other day I was admiring her latest art projects (while stopped at red lights, of course) and I reminded her that she's NOT a taper! Mommy's the taper in this family. She looked at me with this clever little smile and said, "I'm a glue-stick-girl!"

Crack.me.up.

Wordless Wednesday

Not Me! Monday!

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.



After asking Steve to watch the kids so that I could take a much-needed shower in peace, I did NOT proceed to brush my two cats instead. When he saw enough fur in the waste can to be another cat the evidence he was NOT amused. Nope! Not me!

Upon hearing frightful screams coming from the bathroom (where my husband and 2 year old were located) I did NOT enter to find stinky brown stuff a mess all over the toilet seat, the wall and my 2 year old's legs, feet and clothes. We did NOT head straight to the tub. Nope! Not at all!

I did NOT dump the large tub of toys on the family room floor because I was so frustrated by what a HUGE MESS our house is in. I know, it doesn't make sense, but this is MY therapy session, so let's just keep moving along here.

I did NOT and do NOT continue to make my children listen to Michael W. Smith's new cd, A New Hallelujah, so many times every day that they have all the songs memorized, including the miscellaneous screams from the random people in the audience. Nope! Not me!

I do NOT thoroughly enjoy and look forward to Not Me! Monday! Nope! Not Me! Notachance!

Memorable Mother's Day Math in May

Since July of 1998 I have been

pregnant for 47 months

nursing for 46 months

pregnant and nursing simultaneously for 7 months

I was pregnant and or nursing for 85 out of 112 months.

I changed diapers for 103 months. I changed diapers for 2 babies simultaneously for 53 of those months.

What has this produced?

• 10 year old boy
• 8 year old girl
• 4 year old girl
• 2 year old girl
• 2 angels in heaven

What does this mean?

• I loved being pregnant.
• I loved having babies.
• I loved nursing them.

And now

• I love staying at home with my children.
• I love homeschooling my children.
• I love watching them grow and learn new things.
• I love to hear them laugh and sing and play.
• I miss my babies that are in heaven and my heart aches for them still. But I know they are safe in Jesus' arms and I WILL hold them again.

I guess I just LOVE my kids and LOVE being a MOM!

God has blessed us immensely.